Walnut Park West is the third of three neighborhoods that are north of outbound I-70 from West Florissant to the City of St.  Louis/St.  Louis County line. From the beginning, its development and welfare have been closely linked to its neighbor, Walnut Park East, and to the Mark Twain neighborhood farther southeast. Its future is intertwined with these communities as well.

Nevertheless, there is a somewhat different look and feel to Walnut Park West than its related neighborhoods. Part of this difference is attributable to the timing of its development. Being farther out and on the fringe of St.  Louis, it had to wait longer for transit, utility, and municipal services to support its development. Whereas huge swaths of the areas to the southeast were constructed between 1900 and 1920, most of Walnut Park West was built after World War I, although platting had begun a decade or so earlier. In a sense, Walnut Park West developed as a "suburb" of its older neighbors.

This suburban quality was expressed in several ways. Walnut Park West’s housing stock is generally newer and on usually wider streets. Few duplex, four-family flats, and apartment units (less than 10 percent) were built as part of this residential mix. Historically, there were significantly fewer corner commercial sites than was typical to the southeast. Indeed, block after block of Goodfellow Boulevard, a major north-south St.  Louis artery, is commercial development free from north of Lilian to near West Florissant. Industrial land use has been negligible from the start.

A large portion of Walnut Park was constructed to better "between the wars era" suburban standards. Lot sizes, setbacks, structural dimensions, exterior finishes and details, and so forth are such that the area bounded by Emma, Mimika, Lalite and the City limits appears to be a middle to upper middle-class suburb of the time. Most of the rest of Walnut Park West is more working-class in origins and appearances but still looks newer, relatively speaking, than most of the area to the southeast.

Walnut Park West also functioned as an "orphan" suburb in an institutional sense. No public park or public school has ever been located within its boundaries. No Roman Catholic church nor parochial school of any kind ever functioned locally as well. Indeed, for years churches of any kind were few, and there was (and is) no library, post office, fire house, recreation center, or the like. These services or facilities had to be obtained from sources outside the area blocks or miles away.

The early German/German-American influence was less pronounced in Walnut Park West than in the Walnut Park East and Mark Twain neighborhoods. For this and other reasons, such as the paucity of local institutions, it never developed a clear identity. It adjoined the "real" Walnut Park but was not quite Walnut Park or anything else. Lack of identity or not, it settled into a half-century of existence as a white St.  Louis neighborhood.

A myriad of factors contributed to the racial transition that gripped the area during the 1960s and 1970s. The first black family to move the area bought a home in the 5100 block of Goodfellow in 1963. Others followed and, for a while, it seemed that an enduring racially integrated community might be established in the nicer parts of Walnut Park West. In any case, that did not occur, and the transition process was largely completed by the mid 1970s.

In recent years, Walnut Park West has tended to do somewhat better than its neighboring communities to the southeast. Nevertheless, its residents share many of the same concerns although conditions vary markedly from block to block or within certain blocks. Crime, physical deterioration, education and economic opportunities, airport-related noise, debris-strewn alleys, and single-family home rentals are local issues and problems that extend beyond neighborhood or political boundaries. Unfortunately, one of the more problematic parts of the City of Jennings, in St.  Louis County, abuts Walnut Park West.

Housing in general and single-family homes in particular represent the basic "building blocks" of Walnut Park West. As previously indicated, industrial and public land uses are minimal within its boundaries, although the numbers of churches have increased in recent decades. Commercial development is strongest along West Florissant but is also present along Riverview and Lilian. There is practically no commercial storefront activity within the interior of the community—that is, along Park Lane, Mimika, and Goodfellow.

Some demolitions have occurred in recent years and more are anticipated. Many lots in older parts of Walnut Park West are relatively narrow and, as isolated vacant parcels, are not conductive to in-fill residential construction when a single problem structure is demolished. Nevertheless, some acceptable sites have existed or will be created. Most original construction was of high initial quality, with the majority being brick, especially west of Mimika. The entire neighborhood has been designated an Operation ConServe community by the City of St.  Louis. This designation entitles it to concentrated and specialized municipal services intended to foster community stability as well as facilitate physical improvements.

Overall, the buildable sites for new development are quite limited. Recently, attractive new duplexes have been well-integrated into the 5900 block of Theodore. More such activity is contemplated at nearby locations when appropriate sites become available.

The 1990 U. S. Census determined that Walnut Park West had 4,610 people, of whom 4,453, or 96.6 percent, were black. There were 1,502 dwelling units, with 1,369 (91.1 percent) single-family in nature. Occupied units numbered 1,367 (91.0 percent), while vacant units totaled 135 (9.9 percent). Among all dwelling units, 1,088 (79.4 percent) were owner-occupied and 279 (20.4 percent) were renter-occupied.

General physical maintenance levels are marginal to good with numerous individual structures in excellent condition. Problem buildings are scattered throughout the area, however, and some blocks are faring worse than others. The 5900 block of Garaesche, west of Riverview, is one example. Recently, various commercial locations along Riverview itself benefited from a façade improvement program.

It has been assumed that there have been some population losses in Walnut Park West, although not to the extent experienced to the southeast and elsewhere in St.  Louis. Just as I-70, which began service in 1961, once facilitated "white flight," it today helps ease the relocation of local black middle-income households to north St.  Louis County and elsewhere. Walnut Park West is fortunate to have several blocks of the finest housing in northwest St.  Louis. This high-quality resource is one of Walnut Park West’s greatest assets. It represents an "anchor" that cannot be duplicated anywhere else today.

Some local Walnut Park West churches have Sunday schools, but otherwise no public or parochial schools are located within the neighborhood. The only quasi-municipal facility of note is the St.  Louis ConnectCare clinic at Harney and Riverview. This governmentally funded operation used to be a municipal health clinic and, before that, a funeral home.

There are numerous churches in the area. Two of them occupy structures that were once the only large public places of worship in the community. The Rose Hill Missionary Baptist Church meets in what was originally the Wesley Methodist Church at Mimika and Emma. On West Florissant and Mimika, the Greater Pentecostal Church of God uses the mid 1950s complex that once served the West Florissant Baptist Church and later the New Sunny Mount Missionary Baptist Church (since relocated to its new sanctuary at Shreve and West Florissant in the Mark Twain neighborhood). Except for church-related programs and St.  Louis ConnectCare, there are no social service providers based in Walnut Park West.

The Riverview–West Florissant Housing Corporation has been formed to help maintain, rehabilitate, and construct new housing in the area. It anticipates several projects west of Riverview, beginning with the Living City Project comprising 10 to 12 new units along Theodore and Garaesche. Some of this new housing, on Theodore, is already occupied. An existing structure on Lucille has been rehabilitated.

A "Block-Aid" effort has been mounted to assist property owners along Mimika. The St.  Louis Urban League’s "Area F" includes several block units in Walnut Park West. With commercial concerns in mind, the West Florissant Business Association has been active. It recently placed attractive new trash containers along Riverview and West Florissant sidewalks.

It is evident that there is already a significant amount of redevelopment activity in Walnut Park West. Its space is likely to increase, however, in future years. Recently, Walnut Park West was included in Greater Walnut Park’" designation as a "sustainable neighborhood" pursuant to the regional St.  Louis 2004 initiative.

As part of this effort, the area will benefit from the preparation, and presumed implementation, of its first neighborhood comprehensive plan. The Regional Housing and Community Development Alliance (RHCDA) has been teamed with Areas Resources for Community and Human Services (ARCHS) to answer this challenge. Both physical development and social services issues will be addressed. Rehabilitated and in-fill housing are certain to be key recommendations and high priorities in Walnut Park West.